Poll: U.S. Catholics likely to follow 'conscience'

CNN ^ | April 20, 2005 | CNN

[everitt12]

ATLANTA (CNN) -- Nearly three-quarters of American Catholics say they are more likely to follow their own conscience on "difficult moral questions," rather than the teachings of Pope Benedict XVI, according to a new CNN/USA Today/Gallup Poll.

At the same time, most of those polled said they did not know enough about the new pope to form an opinion about him

[Vaquero]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1387255/posts

[Knitting A Conundrum]

Truth is not determined by a majority vote - Pope Benedict XVI

[secret garden]

And I'll bet that 3/4 only shows up at church on Easter and Christmas, yet they call themselves Catholic. What role do they play in thier parish ministries? My bet is none.

[secret garden]

thier = their

[NRA1995]

Funny....I don't recall reading "Thou shalt look upon these Commandments as Suggestions if they displease thee"

[demkicker]

Polls, schmolls.... I don't know how I could get through the day without reading all of the polls.

[Fierce Allegiance]

A gay catholic doesn't have a conscience.

[MichaelP]

Nearly three-quarters of American Catholics say they are more likely to follow their own conscience on "difficult moral questions," rather than the teachings of Pope Benedict XVI

Then what is the point of being a catholic, if you are going to pick and choose which teachings you're going to abide by?

Mike

[Liz]

Pope John Paul 11's right hand man.

'We are moving toward a dictatorship of relativism....that recognizes nothing
definite and leaves only one's own ego and one's own desires as the final
measure.' Pope Benedict XVI

[AKA Elena]

How utterly ridiculous -- an incorrectly developed "conscience" (a fact and figure I question from this snippet anyway) can easily just take you right out of Catholicism into some other religion.

Noone, including Christ on Earth ever proposed an easy religion and Catholicism is not simple, nor is it a "cafeteria" (to use the oft used word), to pick and choose which absolute tenets are acceptable to an individual.

I honestly love our converts and wish those who profess and deny the Faith all in the same breath would find another, which is better suited to their beliefs.

[untrained skeptic]

How often do you really think those 3/4 of American Catholic conscience leads them to a different conclusion than the teachings of the Pope?

The question itself is misleading. It's just CNN trying to attack religion as always. Ignore it.

[mware]

"Nearly three-quarters of American Catholics say they are more likely to follow their own conscience on "difficult moral questions," rather than the teachings of Pope Benedict XVI."

Well like FR. JOHN CORAPI said on EWTN last week you can follow your own conscience if you like but you will also go to hell.

[Aquinasfan]

Nearly three-quarters of American Catholics say they are more likely to follow their own conscience on "difficult moral questions," rather than the teachings of Pope Benedict XVI, according to a new CNN/USA Today/Gallup Poll.

We are obligated to follow our consciences. This part of Catholic teaching is well known. What most Catholics (and other Christians, and non-Christians) don't know is that they have an obligation to inform their consciences.

Once again, this is an example of desperately poor catechesis.

At the same time, most of those polled said they did not know enough about the new pope to form an opinion about him

Not exactly surprising. Most Catholics know more about this year's American Idol.

[TheSuaveOne]

"And I'll bet that 3/4 only shows up at church on Easter and Christmas, yet they call themselves Catholic. What role do they play in thier parish ministries? My bet is none."

Why is that, if someone actually uses their free agency that means they can't be as Catholic as you...I hope those aren't real stones you are throwing...la

[goldstategop]

This definition of "conscience" may be aptly summed up as: "And every man does what is right in his own eyes." In other words, moral relativism. You can see exactly what the Church is up against - the greatest error of our time, abetted by secularism and its handmaiden - liberalism. It is time to re-establish once and for all the notion of absolute and eternal truths in the life of Man.

(Denny Crane: "Sometimes you can only look for answers from God and failing that... and Fox News".)

[Aquinasfan]

Well like FR. JOHN CORAPI said on EWTN last week you can follow your own conscience if you like but you will also go to hell.

Now that's short and punchy. I like it.

My seven and nine-year-old daughters are afraid of Fr. Corapi. Maybe it's because I like to say in my Boris Karloff voice, "Father Corapi is coming to get you!"

[Aquinasfan]

Why is that, if someone actually uses their free agency that means they can't be as Catholic as you...

No free agency in the Church. No unions either.

Either you believe what the Church teaches or you don't. If you don't (not out of ignorance, but willfully), you're not a Catholic.

[secret garden]

You have presumed I am Catholic. There is more to being a member of a specific religion than merely draping one's self in an appellation. If you consider that to be throwing stones, so be it.